I've got 12 days

[reinstone]

On september 22 I am having a party and need to have 8 kegs of beer ready to go (I want them clear). The various beers have been cold conditioning in the kegs right now (one month plus) and still exhibit chill haze (possibly suspended yeast) I will force carb when all else is finished. I have cartridge filters of 5 and one micron (several), gelatin and some polyclar (though I will need to get more) . Can anyone tell me the best plan of action for clearing a kolsch, pils, altbier (no haze please) and amber ale (which can have a haze). I have been tasting them flat and they are pretty great but am now gonna work on appearance. thanks a ton.....also the kegs are in a temp controlled deep freezer so I can filter at any temp

also the beer is slightly carbonated from the residual CO2 soaking in from corney lid sealings at low temps.

 

[willness33]

I've had great results with just using 1.5 tsp of dissolved polyclar (in water) per 5gal batch. I dump it right in the secondary when racking. It's solved any chill haze or just plain cloudy issues that I've ever had.

 

[itsbeeryo]

Filtering will clear it up immediately; go with it.

 

[JJL]

+1 to the filter. If you pass them all through the 5mic and then the 1 mic that should take care of it. You might want to change filters in between beers, but if you're not, you should probably run them through lightest to darkest.

 

[Golddiggie]

What temperature do you have them at?? I found that at the right temperature, the 'chill haze' is less of an issue (or completely gone). It would also help to know what recipes you used, so we can see if there's any haze producing ingredients in them. If you don't move the kegs around, in the fridge, you shouldn't have any need to filter the brew. Having them chilled for a month, or more, means everything has settled to the bottom. Carbonate them up, and then pull a pint, or two, and see if they then pour clear.

Of course, if you did a good job at the transfer from fermenter into the kegs, the sediment in the kegs will be minimal. I typically have very little left in mine once a keg has kicked (not enough to be picked up by the dip tube).

 

[osagedr]

Filtering will clear it up immediately; go with it.

Whether filtering works depends on what is causing the haze. One micron may not get the beer clear, and may strip flavour.

My first choice for clearing is Biofine Clear. One tablespoon clears most everything within two days; if it doesn't, use another tablespoon (it might need less than a tablespoon but I tend to just start there).

My second choice is gelatin. IIRC let one teaspoon of powder bloom for 15 minutes in 4 oz (half a cup) of cold water, then heat to over 170 for 5 minutes or so, then add to beer. Takes a bit longer than Biofine to work in my experience, but can be very effective. You have time to use gelatin.

If your beer has been carbed up while conditioning, you are golden and I would bet gelatin will do the trick. If you still have to carbonate it, time is tight but you can carb stuff in 36 hours if it's cold enough.

In a nutshell I would add your favourite clearing agent directly to your keg and go from there. The first pints you pull from the kegs will be gunky, but after that should be okay. The colder you can get your beer in the meantime, the better IMO.

Good luck!

 

[inhousebrew]

I've consistently had great results with just isinglass and cold crashing in the keg.

 

[reinstone]

one thing here......i definately have chill haze in some of the beers. is polyclar the answer or filtering.....or will the jello help? thanks

 

[reinstone]

kegs are at around 33 degrees....
recipes are kolsch, alt, bohemian pils from brewing classic styles with the wyeast strains used as listed in the book. My ale is a levitation clone from can you brew using wyeast american ale.

One thing I didnt do was a protein rest......no sure how I have been missing that for a year now.

 

[reinstone]

as of last night gelatin was added to the keg after being warmed in water to 155. I swirled the kegs and there they sit. My filter arrived today.....should I hit them with a 5 micron and then use polyclar in the next keg and then filter with the 1 micron? I dont mind taking the steps ...

or should I wait a few days....add polyclar and then filter if needed?

 

[inhousebrew]

This is just me but if you added the gelatin you could give them some time to see if they work. If it's still hazy three days out filter and then force carb. Also, I never do a protein rest and with the isinglass (which effectively I believe is about the same as gelatin) I get pretty clear beers all the time

 

[reinstone]

Hi- this post has been extremely helpful so far.

I sampled the beers after adding the gelatin.......it did wonders for the clarity and taste..

now I have a bit of chill haze.....what you might get when you chill a macro brew to 32. Its pretty but not the "I'd bend that over in a porta potty" type gorgeous. It has a few cosmetic flaws.....mainly a small chill haze.

I want to get the beer a bit more clear and I still plan on polyclar and/or filtering. The beer is modestly carbonated from sitting in the keg under sealing pressure.

I use a cartridge filter and a spundle valve with guage so filtering carbed beer shouldnt be a problem.

would it be best to filter and see how it looks at one or five microns and the use the polyclar....

or add the polyclar as it sits and then filter if required.


thanks guys....and gals.....if it doesnt improve a bit I will be happy with the product..........but I would like to make it great.

 

[Airplanedoc]

I've consistently had great results with just isinglass and cold crashing in the keg.

I can agree with this. isinglass is available locally, I saw some at the shop last time I was there.

 

[reinstone]

What shopp in central Illinnois. Thanks.